Giving Tuesday is an annual celebration of our non-profit service organizations and a time to encourage you to donate to support them. This year it is on November 28, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. It is said that non-profits receive 80% of their annual contributions between Thanksgiving and Christmas, so now is the time when they desperately need you to join in and get them set up for another year of service. Giving Tuesday is a great day to spend a few minutes getting your annual giving done.
Eight organizations active in Wallingford are participating in Giving Tuesday. If you would like to help any of these we’ve listed below, you can click on the organization name to go to their website and look for the donate button, often in the upper right hand corner. Some of them have provided a special donation page, which has a highlighted link in the description below. In addition to donations, all of these organizations would welcome your volunteer service, from helping with programs to serving on their Board of Directors.
Assistance League of Seattle transforms the lives of children and adults through community programs. Operation School Bell program works to remove barriers to education for under-resourced students by providing them with new clothes and supplies. The Enrichment Scholarship Program provides scholarships for middle schoolers to attend inspiring summer camps. Financial Aid for Education program provides tuition and support for adults working to earn a college degree. The Assistance League of Seattle funds their work, in part, through a Thrift Shop which is staffed entirely by volunteers and located at 1415 N 45th St.
Boys & Girls Club provides support to kids and teens in the community through an after-school program for elementary aged youth, a free drop-in program for teens, and summer day camps. The Club is located at 1310 N 45th St. The after-school program includes homework assistance, arts and crafts, and gym activities for all. There are also opportunities to participated in more comprehensive learning programs such as drama, chess, photography, cooking and tutoring. There is an extensive teen program that includes service and leadership opportunities as well as recreation-based programs such as Friday teen late nights—all at no cost to youth. You can also donate at this special webpage. Please make sure to select “Wallingford” from the drop-down menu so your donation goes to kids in the neighborhood!
FamilyWorks provides a variety of food and family resources to families who are furthest away from justice in North Seattle. The Wallingford Food Bank offers access to fresh and culturally relevant foods three days a week during distribution hours. It also provides emergency food boxes, home grocery delivery, regular mobile food pantry visits to partner locations, and kid-friendly food boxes with weekend food for students. This September, FamilyWorks opened our brand new Family Resource Center (FRC) at the Cedar Crossing affordable housing community in Roosevelt. 
The new FRC features a beautiful playroom for weekly multilingual playgroups, a classroom to host parenting classes and workshops, a Community Closet where caregivers can shop for their children, and private spaces to consult with Community Connectors for resource referrals. FamilyWorks also operates two school-based FRC locations at Nathan Hale High School and Broadview Thomson K-8, where we help families navigate social services and alleviate food insecurity right on campus.
Historic Wallingford is a volunteer-led neighborhood organization that works to foster an awareness of and appreciation for Wallingford’s history and architecture. Following the significant achievement of listing the Wallingford-Meridian Streetcar Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places, efforts this year focused on celebrating Wallingford by producing a second Exploring Wallingford self-guided brochure and a monthly live radio show called The Wallingford Local, as well as participating in the Wallingford Kiddie Parade and 45th Street Clean-Ups.
Next year, they plan to expand on these efforts by collaborating with the community to produce additional beautification projects, short videos showcasing Wallingford stories and home styles, and a self-guided exploration of south Wallingford. By donating to Historic Wallingford, you will help them continue their mission of educating the public, advocating for preservation, and fostering a sense of community. This Giving Tuesday, your gift will have twice the impact as Historic Wallingford’s Board of Directors are showing their appreciation by matching donations dollar-for-dollar up to $1,250. To learn more about Historic Wallingford and how to donate, please visit their Giving Tuesday fundraising page.
Solid Ground is an anti-poverty organization, with services that include housing and homelessness, hunger and nutrition support, transportation services, statewide anti-poverty advocacy, legal services for persons needing to access public benefits, and financial skill building. Solid Ground developed and operates six buildings that were surplused when the Navy left the Sand Point Naval Air Station, now Magnuson Park, and new townhomes and apartments on the Sand Point site, for a total of 175 housing units. It also operates a shelter for families leaving domestic violence situations and a family shelter that offers short-term housing in apartments. The housing services include case management and community resource and support services with the aim of finding permanent housing for the families as soon as possible. Solid Ground operates the free downtown circulator bus and the ACCESS bus service that provides bus service for elderly and disabled folks who can’t rely on the Metro bus system. Their special Giving Tuesday donation page is here.
Stone Soup Theatre is dedicated to creating and continuing to create a space where our youth can perform and develop their acting skills. We provide drama education enrichment programs at our location in the Wallingford Presbyterian Church and to public and private schools in and around the greater Seattle area. Our goal is to expand our young actors’ imagination through performance within our Youth Conservatory, Stone Soup Kids, Stone Soup Ensemble and after-school programs.
Tilth Alliance is a local non-profit that works with Washington farmers, gardeners, and eaters to build a sustainable, healthy and equitable food future. Each year, Tilth Alliance delivers over 26,000 bags of locally grown produce to families in South Seattle, provides nutrition education to over 2,000 immigrant seniors, coaches over 5,000 local gardeners, 
distributes $200,000 to organic farms in Washington, employees 45 youth stewards, delivers hundreds of hours of hands-on education to individuals of all ages, and much more. Don’t miss our annual Edible Plant Sale in Meridian Playground the first weekend of May! We will have close to 100,000 edible plant starts available to help you get your garden growing along with food trucks and vendors to explore.
Wallingford Community Senior Center (WCSC) is the place where older adults in Wallingford are empowered in their pursuit of healthy aging. WCSC and its members create and host vibrant programs and services for older adults in the north Seattle community. Popular offerings include EnhanceFitness, Community Lunch, bridge, mahjong, and Death Café. The center also has discussion and art groups and plans special events and outings throughout the year. WCSC also has a dedicated social worker who is a geriatric mental health specialist. The social worker can perform cognitive assessments for dementia, depression and other conditions, as well as provide fall-risk assessments at local homes. They assist adult children as they learn to care for their parents, and help navigate housing options and other complex situations. WCSC spaces are available for community groups to rent. Whether you are looking to benefit older adults, folks in need, or the wider Wallingford area, getting involved in your community has never been easier! Join us at the Wallingford Community Senior Center, located on the lower level of the Good Shepherd Center.